Tennessee Williams Biography
Personal Life: Tennessee Williams was born Thomas Lanier Williams on March 26 th, 1911, in
Columbus, Mississippi. Williams was mainly raised by his mother, Edwina Williams, as his father was
an alcoholic with a demanding job as a salesman. His grandfather was a priest who, shortly after
Williams’ birth, was assigned to a parish in Mississippi so Williams lived in in the parsonage in his early
childhood. When Williams was eight, his family moved to Missouri following his father being
promoted. Once there, they were forced to move due to his father’s drinking and his mother’s search
for a suitable home.
By age sixteen, Williams had won third place for an essay that was published in ‘Smart Set’ and had a
short story called “The vengeance of Nitocris” published in an issue of a magazine called ‘Weird Tales’.
In 1929 Williams enrolled in journalism classes at the University of Missouri but was later withdrawn
by his father after failing a military training course. Williams then continued to write, while working a
job he disliked at the International Shoe Company Factory.
Before his 24th birthday, Williams suffered a nervous breakdown and was forced to leave his job. He
went on to attend the Washington University and the University of Lowa, where he graduated in 1938
with a B.A. in English. Williams then adopted ‘Tennessee Williams’ as his pen name. In 1943, Williams’
older sister Rose (who was diagnosed with schizophrenia as a young woman) was lobotomised for her
increasingly disturbing behaviour. She was institutionalised for the rest of her life, while Williams
supported her financially and visited her often.
In 1940, Williams began a relationship with Kip Kiernan who was a young dancer. Kiernan later left
Williams to marry a woman and died four years later, leaving Williams distraught. Williams most
successful relationship was with a man named Frank Merlo and lasted 14 years. In 1947, Williams
proved himself as a great writer with his hugely successful play ‘A Streetcar Named Desire”. They
broke up because of infidelity and drug abuse, but Williams returned to Merlo when he was diagnosed
with lung cancer to care for Merlo until his death in 1963. Williams fell deeper into his depression and
was prescribed increasing amounts of amphetamines and barbiturates in an attempt to overcome his
depression and insomnia.
On February 25th, 1983, Williams was found dead at the age of 71 in his hotel suite in New York following
taking a toxic amount of barbiturates.
Literary life: It is generally agreed that Williams drew on his own experiences of having a dysfunctional
family in his writing. For example, his mother was the model for Amanda Wingfeild in “The Glass
Menagerie”, his father the inspiration for Big Daddy in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” and a co-worker from
his factory job became Stanley Kowalski in “A Streetcar named Desire”. He was also influenced by
poets and writers such as Hart Crane, Thomas Wolfe, and Emily Dickinson, who are referenced in his
writing. Hart Crane was an American, modernist poet who Williams admired enough to include the
poem “The Broken Tower” as an eclogue for his play “A Streetcar Named Desire”.
Attitudes and ideologies: Williams’ social and political ideologies were considered fairly radical at that
time. His writing demonstrated the prejudices of America’s old south. He was anti-fascist and strongly
against racism and he used his plays to demonstrate these attitudes. Being a homosexual himself,
Williams has liberal views on sexual identity which are included in some of his plays. Williams wrote
homosexual characters such as Brick in ”Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”, despite being targeted by the media
for his sexuality.
Personal Life: Tennessee Williams was born Thomas Lanier Williams on March 26 th, 1911, in
Columbus, Mississippi. Williams was mainly raised by his mother, Edwina Williams, as his father was
an alcoholic with a demanding job as a salesman. His grandfather was a priest who, shortly after
Williams’ birth, was assigned to a parish in Mississippi so Williams lived in in the parsonage in his early
childhood. When Williams was eight, his family moved to Missouri following his father being
promoted. Once there, they were forced to move due to his father’s drinking and his mother’s search
for a suitable home.
By age sixteen, Williams had won third place for an essay that was published in ‘Smart Set’ and had a
short story called “The vengeance of Nitocris” published in an issue of a magazine called ‘Weird Tales’.
In 1929 Williams enrolled in journalism classes at the University of Missouri but was later withdrawn
by his father after failing a military training course. Williams then continued to write, while working a
job he disliked at the International Shoe Company Factory.
Before his 24th birthday, Williams suffered a nervous breakdown and was forced to leave his job. He
went on to attend the Washington University and the University of Lowa, where he graduated in 1938
with a B.A. in English. Williams then adopted ‘Tennessee Williams’ as his pen name. In 1943, Williams’
older sister Rose (who was diagnosed with schizophrenia as a young woman) was lobotomised for her
increasingly disturbing behaviour. She was institutionalised for the rest of her life, while Williams
supported her financially and visited her often.
In 1940, Williams began a relationship with Kip Kiernan who was a young dancer. Kiernan later left
Williams to marry a woman and died four years later, leaving Williams distraught. Williams most
successful relationship was with a man named Frank Merlo and lasted 14 years. In 1947, Williams
proved himself as a great writer with his hugely successful play ‘A Streetcar Named Desire”. They
broke up because of infidelity and drug abuse, but Williams returned to Merlo when he was diagnosed
with lung cancer to care for Merlo until his death in 1963. Williams fell deeper into his depression and
was prescribed increasing amounts of amphetamines and barbiturates in an attempt to overcome his
depression and insomnia.
On February 25th, 1983, Williams was found dead at the age of 71 in his hotel suite in New York following
taking a toxic amount of barbiturates.
Literary life: It is generally agreed that Williams drew on his own experiences of having a dysfunctional
family in his writing. For example, his mother was the model for Amanda Wingfeild in “The Glass
Menagerie”, his father the inspiration for Big Daddy in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” and a co-worker from
his factory job became Stanley Kowalski in “A Streetcar named Desire”. He was also influenced by
poets and writers such as Hart Crane, Thomas Wolfe, and Emily Dickinson, who are referenced in his
writing. Hart Crane was an American, modernist poet who Williams admired enough to include the
poem “The Broken Tower” as an eclogue for his play “A Streetcar Named Desire”.
Attitudes and ideologies: Williams’ social and political ideologies were considered fairly radical at that
time. His writing demonstrated the prejudices of America’s old south. He was anti-fascist and strongly
against racism and he used his plays to demonstrate these attitudes. Being a homosexual himself,
Williams has liberal views on sexual identity which are included in some of his plays. Williams wrote
homosexual characters such as Brick in ”Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”, despite being targeted by the media
for his sexuality.
